One Ride Up
by dede94e
Summary: [AU] Regina, a beautiful and powerful woman, bumps into a handsome British man in the elevator. A meeting that will change her life forever. Will she be able to manage her private life and her career as editor-in-chief of the Storybrooke Magazine at the same time?
1. Chapter 1

Hey everybody.

This is my first AU story, I'm still learning a lot of this 'universe', be gentle with me.

I'd like to dedicate this story to the **Kardaiulina** squad. I would've never written this without them. Love you so much girls!

I don't force anybody to read my story. If you don't like my ideas, my writing, my wording or the decisions I'm gonna make, please, just forget about it. Don't criticize or offend me, writing is just a hobby. Thank you!

* * *

'Thank you for the amazing night, ladies!' Regina says louder than she can ever realize. She leans against the open door of the cab, looking at her closest friends.

Emma, Mary Margaret and Isabelle are sitting on the back of the cab, smiling at her. Isabelle, called Belle by her friends, is probably the sober one of that group. She's not a big fan of alcohol since the night she puked her guts after a party at Emma's house. Belle drunk four shots of smooth vodka, one after the other, even if she didn't have dinner. Emma, on the other side, is more like a party girl. A beautiful blond woman in her early thirties, with no need to have a man to tell her how to run her own life, especially after what Walsh did to her. He tore her heart apart, by breaking the engagement only two months before the wedding. Since that day forward Emma's favorite line was 'After all, tomorrow is another day' by the movie Gone with the wind. Mary Margaret is the sweetest of their group. The friend you can always count on, at any hour of the day. She dedicated her whole life to studying and, after some ups and downs, she got a job as teacher in a prestigious primary school of New York. Unfortunately, Mary Margaret hasn't found her other half yet. She thought she found a good suitor in Victor Whale, but she changed her mind when she realized his crazy life could've never matched hers. Find her true love is clearly not on the top of her to-do list. Not now, at least.

And then, there's Regina. The birthday girl, the reason why they are celebrating. A stunning and powerful woman. A perfectly sculpted body, black hair and magnetic brown eyes. Editor-in-chief of Storybrooke Magazine, one for the most popular gossip magazine of New York. Fairytale weddings, exclusive of the most cool events in town, face-to-face interviews with famous people of the show business, and much more. Despite her fame, Regina is still the same small-town girl. The little girl who fell asleep every night dreaming of living in a beautiful house with a white picket fence, having many children with an handsome man who loves her more than anything. But destiny had different plans for her. She fell in love during her Senior Year with Daniel, one of her closest friends. The kind of love that changes every teenager's life. The puzzle of her life was slowly creating itself, she graduated with honor from Columbia University, she found a job as reporter for Storybrooke Magazine and she was crazy in love with Daniel. Few years later, Regina was pregnant of their first child, Henry. A beautiful and smart little boy. At the beginning it was hard for her to match her private life with her job, but Daniel spontaneously took a step back in his career to take care of little Henry as Regina was becoming more important in the publishing world. Years spent by, and everything was perfect in Regina's life, until one day Daniel filed for divorce. She was just one step away from becoming the new editor-in-chief of the magazine but her private life was falling apart right in front of her eyes. There was nothing she could to prevent Daniel from walking away, but she honestly understood his reasons. She was too much obsessed with her career that family came second. Regina hated herself for that, especially for the little Henry, he was only 4 when they divorced. Daniel and Regina remained on good terms because, after all, they still loved each other but unfortunately their lives weren't meant to be lived together.

'We should do this more often!' Regina says loudly again. 'Goodnight. Love y'all!'

The girls wish her good night in sync, before she closes the door. The yellow cab disappears around the corner when Regina is still waving.

 _Okay. It's time to go._

Regina turns and starts walking toward the main entrance of the building. She lives with Henry in the attic, in a beautiful and modern apartment. She takes a deep breath opening the glass door in front of her.

'Good night, Miss Mills.'

After she divorced from Daniel, she decided to use her maiden name.

'Good night, Killian.' Regina greets the concierge, trying to sound sober as best as she can. 'What a great sky over New York tonight, isn't it?'

'Yes, ma'am. Wonderful.' He replies politely. 'Would you like some help to get to your apartment?'

'What? No, I'm perfectly fine!' She sounds rude, which is exactly the last thing she wanted. Killian is a good man, who helped her many times. 'But thank you, Killian.' Regina walks away, avoiding any chance to do or say something she would regret the next morning. She reaches the elevator in the amazingly decorated hallway. The doors open as soon as she presses the button.

 _Great!_

Walking in, Regina presses the button to reach the highest floor of the building. The 20th. Leaning against the handrail inside the elevator, she closes her eyes. The three margarita and two Manhattan drinks she had start causing a tremendous pain inside her head. She can't wait to lie down on her bed and take a long and peaceful sleep. Henry is staying with Daniel for the weekend, which means Regina has almost two days to recover from what she knows it will be one of her worse hangover ever.

'Wait!'

Regina opens her eyes wide and she notices the door of the elevator are slowing closing. She wonders if that voice was real or alcohol is just making fun of her. She patiently waits, without daring to take a look outside. Right before the doors completely close, a hand appears between them, opening them. A tall and handsome man steps in the elevator, right in front of her. Regina tries to focus the imagine of him, but the only thing she notices is his ocean blue eyes. She stares at him for a moment that feels endless, until he speaks up.

'What floor?' His voice is very deep.

'Hmm.. 20th.' Regina replies, trying to focus on something else than his eyes.

The man presses two buttons: 18th and 20th, then he leans against the handrail next to her. The silence fills up the room as the elevator slowly goes its way up. If Regina wasn't drunk enough, she surely would have said something about his clothing. A man who wears sneakers with a black trench coat is definitely one of the most horrific thing she's ever seen in her life. Fashion is in her DNA and that look is making her sick. Gazing at him, from tip to tail, Regina notices that, despite his lack of style, everything is definitely on point. Slightly taller than her. His beard is long enough to look like a real business man, not like a tramp. She can even tell that underneath that trench coat, his muscles are perfectly sculpted, strong enough to even lift her up.

The elevator stops brusquely, forcing Regina to turn away as the lights go off. Thankfully the emergency lights turn on, but she can barely see due to the redness of the lamps.

'What? No!' Regina takes few steps ahead, reaching the control unit. 'H – hello? Is anybody there?' Regina says loudly to the intercom, pressing the alarm button. 'We're stuck in here!' She repeats herself few more times but in vain. Nobody knows they are in there.

'Ma'am, sorry. D – do you have a cell phone?'

Regina turns fast, getting enough dizzy to barely stands on her feet. The man is closer than she thought. She can smell his fragrance, Acqua di Giò by Giorgio Armani. She would recognize it by miles away.

'I went out for a walk and I left mine in my apartment.'

'I – I..' Regina is slowly losing herself in those blue eyes. 'Of course I do! I don't go anywhere without it.' She says with a domineering tone. Find her cell phone in that small black purse is harder than she thinks. _Bloody alcohol._ When she eventually grabs it, she takes it off and presses the unlock screen button. Nothing. The screen doesn't turn on. She tries again and again.

'Oh.. let me guess. Your phone is dead.' The man says with a proud grin on his face. She can't help but notice his fascinating English accent.

'Yes. It is.'

'Don't worry. Somebody will come for us.' He takes few steps back, leaning again on the handrail. 'They always do.'

'You already have been in a situation like this then?'

'No, but the security always shows up in the movies.'

'Oh, great.' Regina takes deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. She's pretty high and stuck in an elevator with a stranger man, what else can go wrong?

Regina bought that beautiful pair of black high heels for her birthday, but her feet are in a terrible pain right now. She's used to wear heels every day at work, but it's Friday night and she's extremely exhausted. Holding herself onto the handrail, she lowers and takes them off.

'So..' She says catching his attention. Someone has to break the ice, God knows for how long they will stay there. 'What is an handsome British man like you doing in New York?'

'Running away from London.' He says from the opposite side of the elevator. 'Looking for a job. Start a new life here.' He's now staring right in her eyes. 'And you? What are you celebrating?'

'What makes you think I'm celebrating something?' Her defensive side is now showing up.

'Well, it's very late, you're wearing that beautiful dress and..' He stops pretending to take a break. 'Oh.. you're a bit high.'

'I'm not high. I'm fine!' Regina says thrusting her fingers through her unruly hair. 'But yes, I'm celebrating my birthday. My son is with his father, so I had a night out with some friends and despite what people think, I know how to have fun.'

'Happy birthday, ma'am.'

'Actually it was Wednesday.' She smiles, challenging him. Deep down she knows he's not wrong. She's high, but she'd never admit it, especially not to him.

Regina doesn't know if either she's about to faint or the air in the elevator became increasingly unbreathable. When she turns to the man in front of her, she notices he's sweating. It's hot, way too hot. She takes off the leather black jacket and puts it on the handrail next to her, hoping it will help her somehow. He follows her movements and takes off his trench coat. Regina was right all along, his body is perfectly sculpted. Her glance moves down his body, from his neck down to his lower abdomen. The white long-sleeved shirt is skintight enough to highlight his pectorals and abs, but something else catches her attention. A large bulge is pressing against his black trousers.

 _Oh my God…_

Regina feels very dizzy. Her legs starts trembling uncontrollably. Despite the fact that she's leaning herself onto the handrail, she's slowly falling at the ground.

'Ehi.. ehi..' The man moves fast and grabs her right in time. 'Ma'am, you're not fine. You need to sit down.' He says, firmly holding her hips.

'I'm.. I'm fine..' Regina says lowering her head, inhaling his fragrance. The dizziness slowly goes away but her mind is far gone. That handsome man is standing so close to her that she can feel his warm breath against her skin. 'It's just so hot in here and.. your presence is not helping at all.'

Regina can't believe those words actually came out of her mouth. Alcohol is speaking for her. She would've never dared saying something like that to anybody, especially not to a stranger. After her marriage with Daniel ended, she built a wall around her heart, closing herself. The last thing she wanted was suffer and, most importantly, she never wanted to disappoint her little boy once again. Since that day Henry became the most important thing in her life. And yet, she feels attracted to that British man. She meets beautiful men every day because of her job but nobody is like him.

'Can you stand up?'

'I can do more than that.' Regina moves her hand behind his head and pulls him closer. Their lips meet halfway in a burning kiss. Her whole body is on fire, urging to be satisfied. She keeps her eyes wide open, noticing how shocked he is. When she eventually realizes how wrong it is, she breaks the kiss. 'I.. I'm sorry..' She says trying to catch some air.

'What for?' He bites his lower lip as he staring at hers.

'I should've.. never..' Regina's glace moves up and down, from his ocean blue eyes to his lips. She may be high, but she knows what she wants. And right now she wants him. 'Oh, never mind!'

Apparently he senses her intentions, because he wraps his right arm around her waist pulling her body against his. They stare at each other in silence for an endless moment, until he moves his face closer and kisses her again. This time the kiss is more passionate. He prods her lips with the tip of his tongue, it doesn't take much long for her to opens up to him. She responds to the kiss by exploring his lips and then sweeping her tongue into his mouth. Their tongues are dancing in each other's mouth, as he slowly grabs the rim of her dress and pulling it up. He deepens the kiss and Regina wants more, so much more. Moving his hand between her thighs, he slowly parts her legs.

Regina's hand runs through his hair as she bites his lower lip. She can't control herself anymore, not even if she wanted to. She feels him slides his hand underneath her panties, playing the tip of fingers against her clit. Regina breaks the kiss and moans into the arch of her back, enjoying the amazing pleasure as he slides his middle fingers of one hand deep inside her walls. Regina raises her right leg, giving him more space between her thighs. With his palm facing up toward the ceiling, he motions rhythmically, firmly, beckoning her sweet spot with every stroke. Taking her breath away as a flush of warmth fills her pelvis, she moans loudly. He rubs her flesh and gazes into her feverish eyes as his fingers are running wild inside her. Regina's eyes drift closed as she moans softly. He accepts her sexy little sounds as ones of pleasure, pounding his fingers inside her slower.

'I..' Regina is surprisingly breathless that she can't even speak. Her body instinctively reacts to a new wave of pleasure as he moves his lips on her neck, kissing her skin. The moans became louder feeling his thumb playing on her clit.

Regina decides to act because she knows that nothing would come out of her mouth. Moving her arms between their bodies, she rubs her hand against the large bulge between his legs. He groans in both the agony and ecstasy against her neck. She moves back so that she can unfasten the button and slide the zipper down. His trousers falls at the ground, followed by his boxer pants. Just like that, his semi-erection goes rigid, stroking against her leg. Frissons of pleasure pooled in her belly, filling her entire core and radiating throughout her body like powerful tentacles. 'I..' Regina tries to speak again, firmly grabbing his erection. 'I want you.. inside me.' She shamelessly pulls him closer, forcing him to take his fingers out of her.

The handsome British man raises his head to look at her. Despite the redness of the emergency lights, she falls ever more for his eyes. She could stare at them for an endless moment and never get enough.

'As you wish..' He says breaking the eye contact to look down. He moves both his hands on her arse and takes her in his arms. Regina lets go the grip on his erection to hold herself onto his shoulders. She lowers her head to kiss his sweet lips. Tracing the tip of her tongue against his lips, she demands for entrance and he gladly welcomes her. Regina sweeps her tongue inside his mouth to stroke and sucks his tongue greedily.

He turns around and slowly lies her down on the cold pavement of the elevator, making sure to not hurt her. He's on top of her and instead of breaking the kiss, he deepens it even more. She's running her fingers in his hair with her right hand, feeling his exquisite taste inside her mouth. On his knees, he moves his hands gently down her body and stop right between her thighs. He grabs the edge of her black lace thong and pulls it down her legs, throwing it in the elevator.

 _Here we go again._

'P – please..' she pants in his mouth, spreading her legs to fully welcome him.

Regina can't help but break the kiss when he slowly slides his hard erection inside her, pressing firmly against every inch as he thrusts. A delighted gasp escapes her lips. 'Oh..'

He starts thrusting faster and faster. An electrifying high spreads from her pelvis and radiates down to her toes. She gasps and moans to the throbbing pulses of tingling sensations with each trust he gives her. He grabs her hips, helping her moving in sync with his movements.

Regina's body gives into the hum, the delicious feeling of a high as he continues to thrust his shaft. Deeper and faster, he rides her until she can no longer move against him. She feels him so deep, slightly too deep to hold him in her walls. She moans from the intoxicating spasms of heat filling her, completely.

Moving his right arm under her back, he raises her. He holds all her weight on his left arm as he pulls her closer. The friction of his cock tantalizes her walls from a new angle.

'Oh.. My.. God..' Regina screams with passion at every thrust, making her cry out. Lifting her feet off the ground, she wraps her legs around his waist to push him even closer. She feels it coming from the very deep within, a climb to that familiar electrical charge. Regina holds her breath, trying to delay the prize in the end. Her walls contract around his cock, sending him quicker into orgasm. She's in heaven as he holds her in his arms, continuing to thrust deeply.

They are one person now and she feels the edge of his orgasm along with her own begins to creep up. She realizes that he wants to send her over first, so he begins to lift his hips to meet hers, adding more pressure and more sensation. She's completely breathless, the orgasm is taking control of every inch of her body. Burying his face in her neck, he slows down the thrust. She feels his cum meeting hers, right inside her.

Both of them can barely catch their breaths. He raises his head to look at her and pulls out making her feel completely empty.

'I.. think..' he takes deep breaths, 'that's enough for tonight.' He gently makes her lie down, putting some distance between them.

'Wait!' Regina says, moving her hands on his face to pull him closer. She kisses him. Their lips meet halfway, tenderly. It's a lingering kiss, soft and gentle.

As they part, he stands up stretching his arm toward her. 'Need some help?'

'Gladly.' Regina says holding his hand as he helps her standing up. 'Thank you.' She whispers just few inches from his ear. He turns to her and smiles, before to lower his back and pulls up his pants and trousers. Regina looks at him, in silence, for a very long moment. She can't believe that she made love in the elevator with a complete stranger, but she doesn't regret it. Alcohol spoke for her at the beginning but, everything that happened, she wanted it. _Hell I did._ Regina grabs the edge of her dress fixing it, distracting herself from him.

All of a sudden, the emergency lights turn off. 'What the hell..?'

They don't even have the time to think of what's happening that a queer whistle fills up the silence. The elevator starts moving up again as the light turns on. Regina takes few steps away and grabs her shoes from the ground, feeling grateful that soon she'd get out of there. She's honestly not sure she can't keep her hands off that charming British man for too long.

'I..'

'Please, don't..' She says looking at him, grabbing his trench coat from the handrail.

'Don't do what? Say that I told you so?'

'Exactly!' Regina shakes her head, smiling at him.

The elevator stops and for a brief moment Regina's blood freezes in her veins. _Not again._ She checks the led above the door and notices they stopped at the 18th floor. She breaths out loudly, feeling relieved.

When the doors open, the figure of a security man appears in front of them. 'W – what are you doing here?' He says shocked to see them.

'You sure took your sweet time to get us out of here.' Regina huffs, angrily.

'We didn't know you were there, ma'am. Are you both alright?'

'Yes, we both are. Thank you.' The British man replies before she can even say something.

'I'm truly sorry for the inconvenience.' The guard says walking away.

They are alone, again. He takes few steps ahead, stopping between the doors and turns to her. 'Are you sure you're okay?' He asks looking at her.

'I'm fine. I – I just need to get some sleep.'

He walks out of the elevator, politely smiling at her. 'Ehi, I don't even know your name.'

'That's probably for the best.' She says as the doors close between them.

The ride from the 18th floor and the attic is pretty fast. She grabs her coat from the handrail and walks in the luxury hallway, reaching the door of her apartment. After a long search in her purse, she eventually finds the keys and walks in. Closing the door behind her, she lets her high heels fall at the ground, throwing the jacket on the back of the couch along with her purse. She's glad to finally be at home after such a long day, and laying down on her bed she feels her whole body relaxes on the softness of the mattress.

'Oh my God..' She gasped, bringing her hand on her forehead. 'I really just had sex with probably the most handsome British man I've ever met…' a smile appears spontaneously on her face, as she looks at the ceiling of her bedroom. The image of those oceans blue eyes is printed in her head. '..in the elevator!'

* * *

This fic was supposed to be a OS but after I started writing it I changed my mind. I'll be juggling between my three ff as best as I can, I promise.

For now, I really hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Let me know your opinion, by reviewing it.

Daisy


	2. Chapter 2

'Come on, Henry. Are you ready?' Regina says, standing in front for the door, not so patiently waiting for her son to get ready.

The weekend passed way too fast for Regina, who needed more time to sleep and, most importantly, to recover from the hangover. When she woke up Saturday morning, her throat was as dry as the Sahara desert, her stomach rejected every type of food, not to mention the terrible headache that forced Regina to hide behind the blankets for the entire morning. Even the smallest glimpse of light was a torture to her eyes. Eventually the pain eased, she could finally leave her bed and hardly reach the bath. She probably took the longest shower she ever had in her whole life, but feeling the hot water hitting her body, drop by drop, was extremely relaxing. Water, it became her new best friend in so many ways. She's never drunk as much water as she did in the past two days, it was the most effective solution she knew to get rid of all the alcohol in her body.

 _Never. I'll never get drunk again._

Regina surely regretted drinking that much, but it wasn't the only thing she did that night. Despite all the efforts to forget the handsome British man she met in the elevator, she kept seeing those captivating blue eyes everytime she closed hers. Regina could hardly picture the physiognomy of his body in her mind due to the emergency lights, but he was muscular. The way he easily took her in his arms before to lay her on the ground. _Oh my God._

'I'm here!' Henry says from the hallway, walking towards her with the bag and the jacket in his hands.

'You'll be late for school, and I..'

'And you'll be late for work. I know, mum, I know.' He stops right next his mother, handing her over the bag while he put on the jacket. 'I'm sorry, I couldn't find my book.'

'That's fine. I'm more worried about you being late than me.' Regina says opening the door and walking outside. She's the Chief-in-Editor of Storybrooke, nobody can complain if she's late, but Henry, on the other hand, doesn't have that privilege. 'Let's go. Jay is waiting for us.'

The black car is waiting right in front of the building like every morning. Being late is not the only privilege Regina has. A private driver is available every minute of every day, wherever and whenever she needs to go, all she needs to do is make a call. Regina doesn't mind enjoying some privileges every once in a while, but the last thing she wants is to take advantage.

'Good morning, Ms. Mills.' Jefferson greets her, opening the car door.

'How many times do I have to tell you to call me Regina?'

'Nice try, but I'd rather call you Ms. Mills. Hi, Henry.'

'Hi, Jay.' Henry jumps in the car and sits on the back seat, followed by Regina. Jefferson closes the door and, rounding the car, he gets in. On their way to school, the silence fills up the vehicle. Regina looks outside the car window, at the people walking across the street talking on the phone or simply enjoying some coffee, she wonders how many of them read Storybrooke. The magazine is more geared to women but it wouldn't be the first time she sees a man reading it.

'First stop. Hunter College.' Jefferson says breaking the silence. Henry thanks him and grabs his bag from the seat between them.

'Ehi. Don't you forget something?' Regina stops him before he gets out.

'Bye, mum.' He gets closer and kisses her cheek. 'See you tonight.'

'See you tonight. Love you.'

'Love you too.' Henry closes the car door behind him and walks fast towards his friends outside the building. Regina doesn't take her look off of him until Jefferson turns the corner. She loses herself watching at all those people all over again, thinking of the amount of work is waiting for her as soon as she gets in her office.

* * *

Regina opens the glass door, walking in the luxurious world of Storybrooke Magazine. She always loved fashion, since she was a baby, Regina spent hours in front of the mirrors wearing her mother's dresses. She used to read fashion magazines before to go sleep every night, wondering how those models would look like if she mixed up some clothes. Her dream was to become a famous stylist like Versace or Chanel, but she realized pretty fast that drawing sketches of dresses wasn't exactly her thing. Give advices, on the other hand, was her best skill and that's the main reason why she accepted to be a reporter for Storybrooke. She had the chance to see in person what people look for in a fashion magazine and change what they didn't like. Every day she spent as reporter taught her some lessons she would never forget. _A neat look never fails_ became her motto, something to live for. Like when she was little, she doesn't mind spending some extra time every morning to take care of her appearance and, obviously, she expects the same from her employees.

Walking in the hallway, the sound of her heels echoes throughout the office. Regina's wardrobe looks like a real Wonderland for women, there are so many clothes to choose from and that morning decided to wear the typical boss outfit. The black leather skirt wraps around her hips and clings to her knees, emphasizing her small waist. A feminine long-sleeved white blouse with pearl buttons highlights her slender body and the fullness of her breasts. The cheery on top of the cake are the high black heels from the latest Gucci's collection. To keep herself warm from the cold weather, Regina chose a black long coat with fur collar.

'Good morning.'

'Good morning, Regina.' The beautiful young lady stands up from the desk, smiling at her. Long straight brown hair with red highlights falls on her shoulders. 'Here's your latte.'

'Thank you, Ruby.' Regina says grabbing her searing hot, skimmed latte with foam and cinnamon on top from her assistant's hand and takes a long gulp of it. She feels it burning down her throat, enjoying its delicious taste. 'Hmm.. You have no idea how much I needed this.'

'I'm glad to be helpful.' Ruby smiles at her.

There's no doubt why Regina hired Ruby few years ago. Everybody thought it was a mistake because she was young and without experience, but Regina saw something in that young woman that hit her as soon as she walked in the room. She needed to learn few things but her style was on point, not trashy but not exaggerated either. Ruby's passion for fashion started at high school when she read an article written by Regina about little girls and their attraction to clothes. The article said ' _If you ever find your daughter playing at dressing up with your clothes, don't scold her, play with her instead. Cherish that time with her as long as you can because, before you can even realize it, she'll be a grown woman and you won't have the chance to live those moments ever again.'_ and in that moment Ruby knew she wanted to work for Regina, no matter all the sacrifices she had to make. Ruby lost her mother when she was 4, she grew up with her grandmother in a small apartment outside New York.

'And Regina, the meeting will start in few minutes.'

'How could I ever forget that?' Regina rhetorically asks, walking away. She needs to take few things from her office before to join the board members for the monthly meeting. She leaves her coat on her lather black chair behind her desk, she grabs the brochures for the meeting and, with the Starbucks searing hot latte, she walks outside her office.

'Look at you!'

'Hi, Cruella.' Regina says, smiling at her dear friend who's walking towards her.

'You should celebrate more often darlin'.' Cruella wraps her arm around Regina's shoulders and friendly kisses her cheek. 'You're gorgeous.'

'Sadly my birthday happens only once a year.'

'Who's talking about birthday? You don't need to celebrate something to drink. Let's have a Martini tonight.'

Regina's stomach reacts impulsively by making a loud riot. Just the thought of drinking some alcohol makes her throw up the pancakes she had for breakfast. 'Maybe another time.' Regina says taking few steps towards the meeting room. 'I'm afraid they are waiting for us.'

Cruella rolls her eyes, nodding and walking unhappy. She's not a big fun of meeting, especially in the early morning, but she has no choice. Cruella got the promotion from Regina herself many years ago, becoming manager of Fashion Department. If there was a person Regina could trust with that department, that person was Cruella.

As Regina guessed, every member of the board is waiting for them. Regina greets every one of them like she usually does before to sit at the head of the glass table. Despite the fact that some of them rather be in their offices instead of talking about budget, sales percentages and plans for the upcoming issue of the magazine, they participate to the meeting. When Regina finishes taking about the routine stuff, August Booth, the manager of Public Relations, speaks up first to share the great news.

'The latest issue is one of the most loved by the readers.' He says by showing some results he collected from a public survey. The new issue is released the first working day of each month. Regina was the one who decided to set a meeting on the second Monday of every month, so they could monitor the performance of the company and of the magazine itself. 'The new layout is a success.'

'We're still working on it.' Neal says smiling at his co-worker. 'About that, Regina. I need you to step by my office one of these days so we can discuss about some details.'

'Sure, Neal.' Regina says taking a note to herself on a paper. She has to work on many things every day that it happens she forgets some of them so, she rather writes down some reminders. She always gives those notes to Ruby, to make sure she can keep Regina's appointment book updated. 'Cruella. Milah. Is everything ready for those spring photoshoots?'

'Yes, ma'am.' Cruella winks at her. 'The models confirmed this morning and the dresses are on their way from Los Angeles as we speak.'

'And we have some ideas for the make up for each outfit. We just need your approval.' Milah says taking some photos from her folder and hand them over.

Regina takes a fast look at them. 'I'll be there during the photoshoot. In case we need to change something, we'll do it right there, but for now, I like them. Good job, ladies.' She hands back over the photos of the make up to Milah, smiling at her.

'Any news about Italy?' Cruella asks with an excited tone of voice.

'Actually, yes.' Regina is happy to answer that question. 'As I told you previously, I'm planning to open an Italian branch of Storybrooke Magazine, and Aurora looks intrigued by this idea.'

'Aurora? You mean Versace's first niece?' Will asks surprised.

'Exactly. I'll leave for Milan in few weeks, so I can meet Aurora in person and get this done.'

'If you need some company, I volunteer. I always thought Italy is the home of fashion, I mean Prada, Versace, Valentino, Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Cavalli and I could go on for hours. Oh my God!' Cruella's eyes are full of love right now. Italy has always been her not-so-secret weakness.

'I knew you'd say it. Don't worry, I'll keep in mind!' Regina spontaneously smiles at her friend. She knows how much Cruella would love to meet all those stylists one day.

'Hate to break this happy atmosphere but there's something more important we need to talk about.' Mr. Gold speaks up from the other side of the table. It's so unlike him not to talk during the monthly meeting but that morning he's been quiet silent until now. 'Even if the latest issue was so loved by the readers, that doesn't change the fact that the profit doesn't increase.'

'It's not decrease either.' August speaks up before anyone has the chance to say something.

'Precisely. It's like we're stuck at this level.'

'Every month we do our best to keep it within the budget and we succeed. We give the readers what they want and we have shown over a number of years that our revenue exceeds our spending.' Regina says trying to understand his point. 'We've reached the main goal of this company years ago, faster than anyone could ever expect and now we're the first fashion magazine of the country.'

'We could do more. There is no limit to the receipts that we might have if we change something.'

'Such as?' August asks.

'Well, at first..' Mr. Gold stands up to make sure to have the attention of every member of the board. 'I believe this magazine needs to have a strong leading figure..'

'But we already do.' Cruella says, interrupting him. 'Regina!'

'What if I have another person in mind?' Mr. Gold walks toward the door of the meeting room and opens it. 'Here you are. Please, come in.'

Regina has never been more confused in her whole life. She can't understand what he's talking about. If the company had financial problems, it'd have been easier to follow his point, but since it's quite the opposite, it's impossible for Regina to follow his reasoning. She stands up as soon as she realizes he's inviting someone to their meeting.

'I would like you all to meet Robin Locksley.' Mr. Gold says, stepping besides as the guest walks in the room.

Regina's blood freezes in her veins, her heart stops beating inside her chest. She can't believe what she's seeing, or better, who she's seeing standing in front of her. Her jaw slightly drops down, allowing Regina to barely breathe from her mouth. She has to admit that it's not easy recognizing him since the outfit is way better than the previous one, but those magnetic blue eyes are impossible to forget. That's him.

 _The man in the elevator._

'These are the members of the executive board of Storybrooke Magazine and this is Regina Mills..' Mr. Gold says pointing her, 'Our Editor-In-Chief.'

The man hesitates for a long moment, looking at her in silence. He looks as embarrassed as she is. None of them expected this. He takes few steps towards her, stretching his arm. 'It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Mills.'

Regina shakes his hand, trying to calm herself down. 'Nice to meet you, Mr. Locksley.' He holds her hand like he did in the elevator to help her standing on her feet. A thill of pleasure runs through her spine remembering of his fingers between her thighs then inside her, pounding faster.

'Please, call me Robin.'

 _At least now I know his name._

Regina smiles at him, releasing his hand as flashbacks of that night keep coming back in her mind. She can feel her cheeks burning for embarrassment thinking of how she managed to unbutton his trousers despite the fact that she was high and how she not-so-gently grabbed his erection in her hand, demanding him to please her.

'You want to replace Regina with.. him?' Cruella asks breaking the awkward silence that was filling up the room.

'I never talked about a replacement. I was thinking of a partnership.' Mr. Gold answers, placing his hand on the British man's shoulder. 'You know, Mr. Locksley is one of the best and most popular journalists of The Telegraph. His resume is quite impressive that he could really help us.'

'Not to be disrespectful..' August says to Robin before to turn to Mr. Gold, 'But you really want a journalist to run this company?'

'Not taken. I have a master's degree in economics except and, obviously, a master's degree in journalism.' Robin says quietly. 'Working for The Telegraph, I had the chance to apply both my economics and journalism knowledge at the same time.'

'You used a past tense. Did you quit your job?'

'Why do you care?' Mr. Gold answers for him. 'He's here now and he's willing to help us.'

'So, let me get this right..' Regina says, trying to figure everything out in her head. 'You want me to work with Mr. Locksley, to consult all my decisions with him about the magazine so we can increase our turnover?'

 _I so hope I'm wrong._

'Precisely! I knew you'd understand it.'

'Actually, I don't.' From the sound of her voice, it's very clear she's upset. 'Why do we need him to run this company with me? When I walked through that door more than ten years ago, this magazine was nothing but a common journal that women used to read at the hairdressers but look at us now. We're the number one fashion magazine in the States, not to mention the fact that we want to expand Storybrooke in Italy.' Regina is looking straight in Mr. Gold's eyes, standing his provoking glance. 'But money isn't the real problem, is it Gold?'

'I don't know what you're talking about.'

'I'm pretty sure you do.' Regina raises her eyebrow, she doesn't buy it. 'Everyone in this building knows how badly you want to take my place, be the Editor-In-Chief and run this entire company by yourself, but here's the breaking news: Storybrooke is _the_ fashion-centered magazine. Clothes, shoes, hairstyles, jewelry, fashions shows, THIS is what we talk about in every single page of our issues and clearly, you're not known for having some experience in these matters.'

'My reputation precedes me.' Mr. Gold grins proudly.

'Indeed!' Regina feels her blood boiling inside her body. She's unexpectedly upset about it. 'You invited Mr. Locksley to work side by side with me to prove your idea that women don't fit in the business world.'

'I think you should take some deep breaths, I can see your forehead vein pulsing.' He says getting closer. 'This is just a supposition, your supposition. I just want the best for the magazine and you should be honored to be able to work with Mr. Locksley.'

'The pleasure is mine.' Robin says trying to ease the tension in the room.

'Let's give it a shot. I take fully responsibility of this.' Mr. Gold is closer enough to make Regina's skin crawl. 'If we won't get the result I expect, we will go back to the old school.'

Regina takes deep breaths, doing her best to control her impulse. She's never felt much sympathy for Mr. Gold but, after this, her opinion about him reached a new lower level. What upsets her the most is the fact that being a woman is the real problem. Why is it so hard for men to accept that women can be as powerful as them? Is this just about pride?

 _It's the 21_ _st_ _century, for God's sake._

'So.. What do you say?'

Regina turns to Robin for a brief moment, wondering if it's a good idea. The look in his eyes suddenly makes her feel less worried about this messy and complicated situation. She turns to Mr. Gold saying, 'If it doesn't work, it's done. No games. No lies.'

'It looks like we have a deal then.' Mr. Gold smiles proudly at her before to stretch his arm towards Robin. 'Welcome on board, Mr. Locksley.'

'Thank you. I'll make sure my time here will be useful.' Robin shakes his hand, taking a fast look at every member of the board.

'I guess the meeting is over. Let's go back to our work. Thank you everyone.' Regina takes her papers, her phone and the empty Starbucks cup and walks outside the room, trying to not meet nobody's glance on her way out. Her mind is full of thoughts, ideas, questions and, especially, anger. For the first time in many years, she feels powerless, wondering if she's really capable of running the company. Mr. Gold's words have a weird effect on Regina. She's done her best since the first day she walked through the front door, she's sacrificed so much to be the boss and co-worker every employee deserves to have but is that enough? Is she the right person to fulfill the role? Questions over questions, but no answers.

'Oh.. it didn't go well, did it?' Ruby asks, standing up as soon as Regina reaches her desk.

'What?'

'You have that look on your face.. when something happened or you're upset.' Ruby tilts her head, raising her right eyebrow, 'Which one?'

'I guess both.' Regina hands her over the paper with all the notes she gathered during the meeting. 'Could you fetch me another Starbucks latte, please?'

'Absolutely, Regina.'

'Thanks.' She starts walking toward her office but she stops and turns to her assistant. 'I don't want to be disturbed until I say otherwise. No calls either.'

'Sure.'

Regina walks in her office and close the door, hoping nobody will disturb her for a while. Sitting on her leather black chair, she turns to the wide windows behind her desk. The rays of the sun filter through the clouds above the beauty of New York, shining up every skyscraper. From her office she has a beautiful view on the ocean, even if it's just a stretch in the distance. Every once in a while Regina turns to that view, allowing herself to forget about the problems and responsibilities that overcome her and her emotions long enough to be able to focus her job. Despite the fact that she's an impulsive woman, she does her best to be as rational as possible when it comes to work. Make a hasty decision in the wrong moment could be the end of years of hard work and it's not a risk Regina is willing to take, that's the main reason why she didn't react in front of Mr. Gold decision during the meeting. It's obvious he doubts her, her work and her leadership, but most importantly he wants her out of the games. Without Regina as Editor-In-Chief, he'd take control of Storybrooke Magazine and turn it into a financial magazine. Business and money are the only two things Mr. Gold cares about, nothing means more than power to him.

 _Game on, Gold!_

Regina is willing to fight with all her strength to keep her job, actually her _dream_ job. She's well aware that she had no idea how to run a company at first but she grew up and so did the magazine. She's proud of her progress and the success of the magazine.

Some knocks at the door make Regina roll her eyes and, without waiting for a permission, someone opens the door. 'Ruby.. I told I didn't want to be-' Regina stops as soon as she notices there's another person standing in front of her.

'I'm sorry, Regina.' Ruby says showing up behind Robin's back. 'I told Mr. Locksley you didn't want to be disturbed but he insisted.'

'My bad.' The British man says raising his right hand.

'It's fine, Ruby.' Standing up, Regina fixes the leather skirt. 'Mr. Locksley is working for the magazine now. He'll stay in Philip's previous office. Please, make sure he has everything he needs from now on.'

'Oh.. Of course.' The wonder in her assistant's eyes is clear. 'I.. I will leave you alone.' Ruby takes few steps back closing the door.

 _Here we are._

'Thank you for that.' Robin speaks up walking towards her desk.

'You're welcome, but..' She sits back down, without breaking the eye contact, 'When I say I don't want to be disturbed, I mean it. Understood?'

'Yes, ma'am. I apologize for breaking in.'

'Now, Robin..' Her head is full of questions that urge to get an answer but there's one more thing she needs to make clear. 'If you're here to take any advantage of what happened the other night, it won't happen.'

'Excuse me?'

'Mr. Gold called to offer you this job and you accepted. You bumped into me in the elevator when I was high and we had sex..' Regina bites her own tongue for saying that, trying not to blush with shame in front of him, 'then you show up in my office and you really don't want to use that as leverage on me?'

Robin clears her voice, leaning himself to the guest chair. 'I understand that what happened in the elevator may have given you a bad idea about me but I am a gentleman. I would never use that as leverage on anybody, not that I need to anyway.' He says raising his eyebrow, knowing exactly his position as well known journalist. He could get a job in every magazine he wants.

'So, you didn't know how I was.' Regina says, wondering how that's even possible. She's well aware that he's not American but all over the world people call her the _Queen of Fashion_ for her acknowledge, experience and style.

'Not until I met you few minutes ago in that meeting room.'

'Oh..' Regina decides to give him the benefit of the doubt since she had no idea of who he was either, despite his reputation. 'Fine.' She sounds ruder that she wanted to. 'For both our sakes, I suggest to never talk about what happened the other night.'

'I agree.' He nods his head, hiding a proud smirk on his face. 'So, what's the plan of day?'

'I..' Regina looks at the papers on her desk, 'I have a lot to do. W – why don't you ask Ruby to walk you to your new office and take a look around for today? Tomorrow morning I will show you how this company works.' That's the first solution she came up with and it's not that bad. Actually, it gives her enough time to complete all the unfinished works she has on her desk and to process this new reality.

'Sounds good to me.' Robin smiles at her.

'If you need anything you can ask Ruby, but remember, she's my assistant not yours.' The last thing Regina needs is to not be able to count on the best assistant she ever had because she's too busy working for him.

'Yes, ma'am.'

'And one more thing.' Regina shakes her head as she says, 'Don't call me _ma'am_.'

'May I call you Regina or should I be more professional and call you Ms. Mills?'

'Regina is fine.'

'Perfect. Have a good day, Regina.' Robin looks right in her eyes hard enough he could drill a hole in her head. 'You can find me in my office which, differently than me, you already know where it is'. Regina spontaneously smiles at those words as he turns and walks out of the office.

The amount of work on the desk scares her but she needs some extra time before to focus on that. Turning to the windows she can't help but thinking of Robin and this entire situation. She really has to work every day with the stranger British man she had sex with in the elevator, the same person who could be responsible for her undoing, not to mention the end of her career.

 _I'm screwed._

* * *

First of all, I'd like to thank all of you so much for reading the first chapter and your reviews, they mean a lot to me, and I'm so sorry for updating One Ride Up just now, I've been busy with another fic and videos.

I really hope you enjoyed chapter 2. Let me know your opinion by reviewing it or just tweet me.

Daisy.


	3. Chapter 3

8.53am

'Where the hell is he?' Regina asks, rolling her eyes. The clock is ticking, second after second. It's not a secret that patience isn't Regina's best privilege, but Robin is seriously playing with fire. They were supposed to start working at half past eight, Regina got to the office earlier than usual but there was no sign of Robin. He didn't bother to call about his delay and yet, she cancelled all her appointments to have enough time to show him the company. The sound of the clock hands ticking echoes in her head, irritating her even more. 'How am I supposed to trust him with my company when he's late the very first day?' Regina grabs a pen from her desk and, with the tip of her fingers, she starts playing with it. The distraction doesn't last long as she can't help but think how pointless this situation is. If Robin really cared about this job, he would've showed up early, or at least that's what Regina would've done if she was him.

 _Will he even show up?_

The question keeps crossing Regina's mind over and over. Among all the answers, one catches her attention more than the others. She has a private driver that picks her up at home and leaves her right in front of the building every morning but what if something happened to Robin on his way to the office? That could easily explain the thirty minutes delay. Suddenly she stops playing with the pen in her hands, looking into the space of her office, without focusing on something in particular. Regina shakes her head, trying not to worry for a man she doesn't even know.

 _He probably found another woman to entertain in the elevator._

She couldn't wait for him forever, there's some work to do. Standing up from her leather black chair, she fixes the short grey dress as someone knocks at the door of her office. 'Come in.'

'Regina, I'm sorry..' Robin's head shows up behind the door.

'You're late!' She says without hesitation, walking toward him. Surprisingly, she could feel a sense of relief seeing him safe and sound in front of her, but she couldn't wait to hear what kind of excuse he's gonna use to justify the delay.

'Here's a peace offering.' He says handing over a Starbucks cup, just few inches from her.

'Excuse me?'

'Your skimmed latte with foam and some cinnamon on top.'

Regina grabs the cup and, for a brief instant, her fingers rub against the back of his hand making her swallow loudly. 'How-'

'I wanted to start this job in the right way but it seems luck isn't on my side today.' Robin says walking past her and put his leather black jacket on the back of the guest chair. 'No warm water this morning so I had the coldest shower I've ever taken. I managed to get to Starbucks but the queue was endless and, in the end, the receptionist didn't allow me to get up here. I tried to explain her that I work for the magazine now but she didn't believe me. Seriously?' Robin says, pointing his finger to his own face. 'Thankfully she listened to Ruby.'

'I..' Regina clears her voice, 'I mean, how did you know what I drink?'

'Oh, that. I'm an expert in reading people. I've spent many years learning how to understand what people really want.' He proudly smirks at her. 'Leading women like you need more than one daily dose of caffeine, but you rather balance the strong taste of coffee with latte, just like you want to balance your life. The cinnamon is the little guilty pleasure you can't say no to, like..'

'Don't!' Regina stops him before he could say something that would bring the entire conversation into an awkward direction.

'What?'

'You and I both know what you were gonna say.' She tries her best to hide the embarrassment but she could feel her cheeks slowly get warm. Taking a long sip, she enjoys the burning feeling of latte going down her throat. It's exactly how he described it, her favorite latte. 'So, shall we?'

'Please..' Robin stretches his arm to let her go first, 'After you.' Regina grabs her cellphone from the desk and walks outside, followed by the British man.

* * *

Walking in the hallways Regina tells him the story of Storybrooke magazine. At the beginning, the magazine wasn't very popular, build a name among the many magazines was harder than anybody thought. The competition was way too strong that for a couple of months the former board of the magazine even considered the idea of shouting down the entire project. If it wasn't for Ingrid, Storybrooke would've never had this success. She was a big fan of the TV series "Sex and the City" and she noticed how popular it became in such a short time. People were enchanted to watch four friends having fun in Manhattan between sex, money and fashion. Ingrid couldn't accept the idea of losing Storybrooke so she suggested to turn it into a fashion magazine, with articles about high fashion shows, dream weddings and gossip. The suggestion wasn't taken seriously at first, but Ingrid's dedication and hard work paid off. When the magazine started getting more popular, she was nominated Editor-in-Chief. Regina didn't have the chance to really know her, as Ingrid had to leave the States to go back to her family in Norway to assist her little sister who had cancer. During those six months Regina worked for her, she realized that being a reporter was amazing but she wanted to be the next Editor-in-Chief of Storybrooke magazine. On her last day, Ingrid left a note on Regina's desk. _You have a great potential. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise._ From that day forward, Regina worked hard to own that role in the company.

Storybrooke magazine became one of the most read magazines in all the country and, in less than a year, it reached the main predetermined goal.

'So, it wasn't a fashion magazine at the beginning?' Robin asks, intrigued by the whole story.

'It wasn't but we wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Ingrid and her passion in fashion and TV series.' Regina says, turning to him. Suddenly a smile appears on her face, she turns away hoping he didn't notice but it's too late.

'What?'

'Nothing.' She shakes her head, still smiling. 'Just.. you have a master in journalism and economics.'

'Here's the thing..' Robin says walking faster to stop right in front of her, preventing her to take another step. 'Business and economics work in the exact same way in every company. The fact that you publish articles about fashion doesn't mean that I can't fit in _your_ world.' He looks very intensively into Regina's eyes that she has to remember to herself to breath. 'And I may not wear Gucci, Valentino or Oscar de la Renta every day but I do have style.'

'Do you?' Regina sarcastically asks, taking a long look at him, from tip to tail. The white shirt perfectly emphasizes his muscular chest and the black jeans are tight enough that Regina can't help but bite her lower lip at that view.

'I do and I will prove it to you.' He says getting closer to her face.

'Oh.' Regina slowly pulls back her head, smiling at him. 'I can't wait.' She fakes a couple of coughs as she starts walking away, hoping he wouldn't say anything else. Luckily for her, they get to Neal's office fast and she knocks at his door.

'Good morning, Neal. Sorry for interrupting you. I'm showing the company to Robin and I would like for him to meet at least the members of the board.'

'Good morning, Regina.' Neal welcomes her with open arms as he usually does. 'Mr. Locksley, it's such an honor to meet you.'

'The honor is all mine. And please, call me Robin.' He says, shaking his hand.

'Seriously, I've read all your articles and I'm thrilled to finally have the chance to work with you.' Neal can't take his eyes off of him. 'Your memorial of Margaret Thatcher in 2013 was astonishing. The way you described her personal life and political career was speechless, the perfect combination. Everyone was skeptical but I knew you'd have won a Pulitzer for that.'

'Wait..' Regina butts in on the conversation, 'Is that article you talked about for days?'

'Yes. He wrote it.' Neal says pointing to Robin.

'Surprised?' Robin asks turning to her.

'I'm impressed.' Regina does her best to masquerade her reaction but she's honestly impressed by his work. She remembers Neal showing her the memorial of the Iron Lady and her amazement in reading such a beautiful and well-written tribute to one of the women that changed the history of the United Kingdom.

'That's still something.' Robin smiles at her before to turn to Neal. 'So, what's your specialty?'

'Oh well, I like to play with the layout of the magazine. Once Regina approves each article and photo, I do my best to find them the best spot on the page, trying to emphasize their importance.'

'And you do it perfectly.' Regina says placing her right hand on his left shoulder.

'You're always so kind.' Neal slightly blushes in front of them. 'Maybe not always, but most of the times.'

'Much better now.' Regina laughs, giving him her evil look as a joke. 'Well.. we leave you to your job. There are so many things I still need to show to Robin.'

'Of course. And Regina, do you remember about-'

'The details? Absolutely. I will step by as soon as I can.'

'Thank you.' Neal says before turning to Robin. 'Hope we will get to work together soon.'

'Me too. Have a good day.'

Regina and Robin walk outside Neal's office and she doesn't hesitate a moment. 'I had no idea I was gonna work with a legend of journalism.'

'Excuse me?'

'Based on Neal's reaction, you're a legend.' Regina says looking at him with the corner of her eye. 'I never saw him glowing up like that before for anybody, except for Meryl Streep but that's something else.'

'Well, I don't consider myself like that, but you. Y _ou_ are a real legend.' Robin smiles, walking by her side.

'You said you didn't know who I was until yesterday morning, during the meeting.' She stops walking and turns to look straight into his eyes. She can feel the fire of her wrath burning inside her, knowing that Robin lied to her since the beginning.

'I may have googled you last night.'

'You googled me?!' She sounds more surprised than she wanted to.

'I couldn't get in here this morning, only knowing that you're Regina Mills, Editor-in-Chief of Storybrooke magazine. I had to know more about my new boss.' Robin raises his shoulders, wondering if she believes him. 'But clearly you didn't.'

'Excuse me if I have something better to do during my evening instead of searching for more information about my new..' She doesn't know how to call his role in the company so she freezes right there.

'Partner?'

'You're not my.. partner! I didn't ask for one.'

'You didn't but here I am.' He proudly smirks at her. 'So, why don't we try to get the best out of this partnership?'

'Fine.' Regina slowly gets closer to his face, provoking him. 'But I'll do it for Storybrooke, not to boost your ego.' She raises her right eyebrow to empathize the last word of her sentence.

* * *

On their way to meet another member of the board, none of them dared to speak up. Regina greeted some of the employees in the hallways but nothing more. All she could think about was how Robin called himself in this messy and complicated situation – partner. She had the chance to work with many people in her life but it never felt as awkward as working with Robin. There's just something about him.

'Here we go.' Regina says breaking the silence, as she walks inside her favorite department of the entire company.

'Regina, darlin.' Cruella shouts from the other side of the room, walking toward her before to friendly kiss Regina's cheek. 'Oh. My. God. You gotta be kidding me.' She says taking a step back to look at her boss' outfit. 'They are Alexander McQueen's boots from his latest collection!'

'Indeed they are.' Regina confirms, slightly tilting her leg to give her friend a better view. The black knee high boots are formed faithfully aroundher calves and ankles, tied up with a beautiful black bow on the back. 'A little gift from Alexander himself.'

'Nothing but the best for the Queen of Fashion.'

'If you want, I'll let you borrow them every once in a while.'

'Of course I want to. They will look amazing with my black and white fur.'

'I knew you would say that.' Regina winks at her, smiling. 'So.. Cruella, this Robin Locksley. Robin, this is Cruella Feinberg. Called "Devil" by her coworkers.'

'That's an on old story, darlin.' Cruella corrects her friend before to shake Robin's hand. 'Finally, I can meet you.'

'The pleasure is all mine, Ms. Feinberg.'

'Oh come on. You make me feel so old. Please, call me Cruella.' She says fixing her double colored hair, as Robin politely nods his head.

'Well, as manager of the Fashion Department, Cruella mainly takes care of the outfits for the photoshoots. Every dress, shoes, bag, accessory is chosen by her in all the details and perfectly combined together.' Regina says, praising Cruella's hard work.

'Sounds complicated.' Robin admits.

'Not exactly. It easy to create the perfect combination when you have the rarest kind of art in your hands. The tough part comes when you're working with people that don't understand it or even worse, when they don't take this job too seriously.'

'That's the reason why they call her _Devil_.' Regina whispers, getting closer to Robin.

'It's not easy to find resilient people like you, who really know the meaning of this job.' Cruella doesn't hesitate a second to justify Regina's words. 'I can be devil sometimes, but only because I want everything to be perfect. And look at you, look how far you've come because of me.'

Regina can't help but agree with every word. Cruella taught her everything she knew since the first day they met. If it wasn't for Cruella and Ingrid, Regina would've never become the Editor-in-Chief. 'I've learnt from the best.'

'Indeed you have.' Cruella says before turning to Robin. 'Maybe I can teach you a thing or two about fashion.'

'It won't be easy.' Robin laughs, trying to hide the embarrassment, but his cheeks slowly turn red.

'Not today though. We're late and we're not even half way through this tour.'

'I will let you go then.' Cruella says, taking a step back. 'Oh, Regina. The dress Valentino designed for the party arrived last night.'

'Awesome! We'll work out the details together.'

'A party?' Robin asks, biting his tongue, worried he's been too nosey.

'Yes. The magazine celebrates its 20th anniversary.' Cruella answers before Regina has the chance to think where to start. 'We will throw the most iconic party New York ever had. Amazing stylists, models, singers, actors from all around the world will attend. And you're invited as well.'

'I won't miss it then.'

'If you need some help with the outfit, you know where to find me. See you around, both of you.' Cruella turns around and disappear behind the closets full of haute couture clothes and thousands pair of shoes.

Regina shakes her head, proudly smiling. First she pointed out Robin's lack of style, even if she's a fan of his white shirt, and now Cruella. She really starts considering the idea that he won't last long in this company. Despite all his efforts, he clearly doesn't fit there. _What the hell Gold was thinking when he chose him?_ Regina's phone rings interrupting her thoughts.

'Ruby? What's going on?'

'Sorry to bother you, Regina. Aurora just sent an email that she's now available for a video call.'

'Tell her that I'll be ready in 10 minutes.' Regina says closing the call.

'Is everything alright?' Robin asks with a worried look on his face.

'Yes, but now I have to talk with Aurora Cavalli to expand the magazine in Italy. Would..' She stops wondering if it was the right thing. Actually she has no choice, she should consult him for every decision and, the sooner he learns something about this world, the easier it will get for both of them. 'Would you care joining me?'

'Only if you want me to.'

'Let's go then. I'll fill you in.'

* * *

The day has been quite productive and time went by fast enough. Regina talked with Aurora about the project and, even if Robin didn't know every detail of it, he found the idea of expanding Storybrooke in Italy very interesting. They discussed which was the perfect town to launch the company and they all agreed that no city could fit more perfectly than Milan. It's always been the heart of the Italian brand, not to mention the spectacular fashion week in autumn. Aurora sadly announced that she won't be in Italy for the next month due to working commitments, but she will be more than happy to welcome Regina as soon as she will be back. Regina has to see with her own eyes where they want to open the company, how they plan to organize the different departments and who is gonna be on charge of each one of them and then, the most important thing - give Aurora some suggestions to start this new adventure in the right way. If this project will work out as Regina always imagined, then it will be the turning point that is gonna change the magazine forever. Nothing and, more precisely, nobody will destroy this project.

'Here's the last dish, mum.' Henry says, interrupting her thoughts.

'Thank you, Henry.' Regina grabs the dirty dish and puts it on the dishwasher as her son goes sitting on the couch. Taking off the white apron, Regina has an idea on what to do that evening. 'Why don't we get some ice cream and watch _Age of Ultron_ together?'

'Really?' The little boy turns around with a big smile on his face. She could see the happiness in his eyes. He adores comic books and Marvel's are his favorites.

'Why not? I could some superheroes stuff lately.' She winks at her son. 'I get the ice cream. You get the movie.' Henry stands up fast and runs to his bedroom, looking for the DVD, while Regina starts walking toward the kitchen but somebody knocks at the front door.

 _Oh, come on!_

Taking a deep breath, she looks through the peephole and sees her parents standing on the other side of the door. The movie night with Henry is canceled and she already knows he won't like that. 'Hi' She says opening the door, welcoming her parents.

'Where's my favorite nephew?' Cora says, walking inside barely considering her own daughter.

'He's.. he's in his bedroom.' Regina does her best to ignore the impulse to fight her mother after only ten seconds. 'Hi daddy.'

'Hello Regina. How are you?'

'Tired, but I'm fine. How is your heart?' She wraps her arms around her father's as they walk together toward the living room.

'Well-'

'Grandma? Grandpa?' Henry askes, surprised to see them.

'That's my boy.' Cora doesn't hesitate a moment and hugs her nephew.

'I'm sorry, Henry. We will watch _Age of Ultron_ another night.'

'But..'

'What? Aren't you happy to see us?' Cora asks, putting him in an awkward situation. That's her specialty. She did it thousands and thousands of time with Regina, forcing her to say what she wanted and she had no choice. She didn't want to let down her mother, especially in front of other people. Regina never liked it but she can't stand by and watching her mother doing the same thing to Henry.

'Y-Yes.. I am.' Henry answers, politely smiling at her. He didn't lie, but he didn't say the whole truth either.

'So, tell me..' Cora invites her nephew to sit next to her on the couch. 'How is school going?'

'Great. I got pretty good in math this semester.' Henry proudly says. 'I wish I could have more time to read books though.'

'You're gonna be such a smart boy, Henry.' Henry Senior says sitting down next to her homonym nephew, winking at him. 'Just like your old grandpa here.'

'I want to be a writer one day. You know, writing stories about conflicted epic love stories, magic and a hero that, despite everything, she's found the strength to go on.' Henry says, turning to his mother. Those words melt Regina's heart, she could feel her eyes filling up. She smiles at him, fighting back the tears.

'I always thought you'd become a bank manager or a politician.' Cora points out.

'If he wants to be an author, that's what he will become. And you'll have all my support, my little prince.' Regina says stretching her arm, so Henry could stand up and hold her hand. 'Differently than me, he will know what means having his mother's support.'

The silence fills up the room for an endless moment. Regina looks straight into her mother's eyes, ready to speak up on behalf of her son if she dared to play her mental games with him once more. She pleased her mother for most of her life, until the day she decided to break through and choose her own path. With or without her mother's approval, she would've become a reporter and that's what she did. When Regina told her parents she was carrying her first child, her father couldn't be happier for her, but on the other hand, Cora didn't take the news so well. Things between them got even worse when they found out about Daniel's decision to get a divorce. Regina was alone, with a child to raise at the beginning of her professional career, thankfully she could always count on her father – that's the reason why she named her son after him.

'Regina..' Henry Senior says, trying to ease the tension in the room but sadly he chose the wrong topic. 'Isn't it the 20th anniversary of the magazine?'

'Yes, daddy. We will celebrate the occasion in style.' Regina proudly smiles at her father who winks at her.

'I can't believe it.'

'Don't start it, mother!'

'I just don't understand how people can really be interested in fashion and stupid clothes when there are more important things happening in the world.' Cora says raising her shoulders.

'We're no longer living in the 40's, mother. Things change. People change.' Regina's tone gets ruder at every word. 'Except you.'

'Excuse me?'

'Maybe you should get out of your bubble and start looking at things for what they really are, instead of judging everything and everybody.'

The situation is no longer under control, but Regina is used to it. It's not a secret that she doesn't have a good mother/daughter bond with Cora, but she loves her father with all her soul. There's nothing she wouldn't do for him, even if sometimes it means tolerate her mother. Regina takes several deep breaths, trying to calm herself down for both her father and son's sake.

* * *

I'm so sorry for taking such a long time to update this story. My inspiration was more focused on vidding Robin and Regina than writing fanfictions. Can you forgive me?

I really really hope you enjoyed this new chapter.

Let me know your thoughts by reviewing it.

Daisy


	4. Chapter 4

First of all, I want to thank once_upon_a_girl for her amazing and hard work. Love you!

I'm really sorry it took me so long to update this ff, but here it is.

Enjoy it!

* * *

Introducing her world to Robin is easier than she would have thought. Regina spent a few days with him, showing the many aspects of their hard work and how the company is structured in different departments. Each one of them has a specific purpose with different deadlines and rules to follow, but in some ways, they are all connected. Should, for any reasons, something go wrong the entire magazine may be delayed and Regina could never allow it. She counts on each manager in the different departments to do their job as good as possible and to make sure things are done the right way. Differently than what people may think of her, they can always count on Regina for any kind of problem, matter or just a suggestion. Being around to help each other is one of the many lessons she's learnt from Ingrid when she started working for the magazine. When Ingrid became the Editor-in-Chief, some people doubted that her attitude and behavior would've changed, that power would've turned her into a nasty woman, but Regina knew better. Ingrid was one of the best and Storybrooke clearly suffered after she left. Regina had some big shoes to fill and it took her a while before she felt entirely comfortable, but things got easier with time. Every single decision, even the smallest one, is crucial when you're the Editor-in-Chief of a magazine with such a massive impact on fashion worldwide. Except for one person, Regina can trust each member of her team to keep up the name of Storybrooke.

Sitting at her desk, the phone shoots a reminder that she has to attend Jason Haunt's photoshoot in twenty minutes. Regina grabs her bag and coat and leaves her office.

'Ruby, please tell Jay I leave in five.' Regina says walking towards Robin's office.

'Yes, Regina', her assistant says, typing Jay's number right away.

The door of his office is half open, but she still knocks. Robin smiles as soon as his eyes meet hers: 'Regina! What can I do for you?'

'Don't.. Don't you close the door?', she asks, walking towards his desk.

'Bad habits, I guess.'

'Oh, fine.' Regina decides not to pay much attention about his lifestyle. The last thing she wants is to be too noisy or even show interest in his life. 'Anyway, I'm leaving to attend a photoshoot session. Care to join me?'

'A photoshoot session? Yeah, sure.' Robin says, standing up. 'Lead the way.'

##########################

'Regina', Jay lowers his head to greet her, as he opens the door of the black Mercedes. 'Ruby messaged me the location of the photoshoot. We'll be there right in time.'

'Awesome. And Jay? This is Robin Locksley, my co-worker.' She says sliding onto the backseat of the car, trying not to waste any more time.

'Nice to meet you, Jay', Robin says, extending his hand.

'It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Locksley', Jay smile politely, shaking his hand.

'Please, call me Robin.'

For most of the time Regina is too lost on the sketches of Jason's dresses to pay much attention to the man sitting next to her on the backseat. Ruby already had the folder ready as she knows how meticulous Regina is, especially when it comes to details. Everything must be on point during a photoshoot, from tip to tail, from hairstyle to shoes – even the smallest detail is played to perfection. Regina believes that the single issue of the magazine can get half of the estimated sales just by using the right cover photo.

'So..', Robin clears his voice, breaking the silence in the vehicle. 'Is there anything in particular I should know about this photoshoot before we get there?'

'Well, Jason Haunt is a dear friend of mine', she says turning to look at him. 'Last year he launched his first collection and he quickly became a famous stylist. His style may be.. alternative at times and not entirely understood by a not-trained eye, but he has a great potential. Jason called a few weeks ago, asking for my opinion about his latest collection and we worked together on some details.'

'But..', Robin doesn't hesitate, 'If you already helped him with the collection, why are we going to the photoshoot session? Or is it something you usually do?'

 _He is smart_ , Regina thinks, biting her tongue. No way she would've let those words slip out of her mouth.

'I rarely attend any photoshoot sessions. With Cruella and Milah I work on the accessories, shoes and hairstyles back at the office, then I leave them on charge.'

'And this time is different, because..'

'Because as soon as Mr. Gold found out about this favor, he called Jason..' Regina purses her lips, still feeling irritated about it, 'And, let's just say that Mr. Gold asked him if he could give Storybrooke an exclusive preview of the collection or, at least, a part of it', she explains, feeling the anger raging once again. Mr. Gold put Jason in such an awkward situation in which he had no choice but to accept it. Regina felt ashamed of being the face of the magazine. When it comes to getting an exclusive on something noteworthy or extremely important, there's nothing she wouldn't do to be one of the first to report it, but not like this. Not with a friend like Jason. 'This is why we are gonna attend this photoshoot. Now more than ever, it has to be perfect, I owe it to Jason.'

'Oh, it makes sense now.' Robin nodded his head, putting the sketches back into the folder when she realizes, that they are close to the venue. 'Correct me if I'm wrong, but it looks like Mr. Gold doesn't do anything for nothing. Like, he always tries to gain something.'

'No..', Regina clears her voice, turning back to him: 'I mean.. no, you're not wrong and yes, that's one of his best features. Speaking of business, that feature is quite effective and productive, but there are limits, that should never be crossed.'

'I see. Well, some people don't think about the weight of their actions, so they cross those limits', Robin looks away, breaking the eye contact: 'And voluntarily or not, they hurt people in ways they probably would never understand. Not completely anyway.'

Regina can't help but feel bitter after those words. She may no longer look into his beautiful blue eyes, but she knows, that something is wrong with him. She wishes she could say something to make him feel better, but when she opens her mouth, nothing comes out. Perhaps one day, he'll tell her what's bothering him, but until then she'll give him all the time he needs.

'Here we are', Jay says, interrupting Regina's thoughts.

'Thank you, Jay', she bubbles, grabbing her bag and the envelope on her lap. Her trustworthy driver gets out of the car and walks around it fast, to open her door. He extends his arms to offer his help. 'I.. I think I can manage getting out of this car without your help. But thank you.' Regina eventually finds a way to get out of the vehicle without falling down onto the sidewalk, in front of many people. 'I'll call you when we're ready to leave.'

'Always at your service, Regina.' He smiles, slightly lowering his head.

Approaching the building, Robin walks faster to get to the door first and opens it for Regina. She thanks him, silently wondering whether he acts like that with every woman or just with her. It's not the first time she notices that he does these little things, like an 'old school'- gentleman, a real one. Not that she would complain about it, she's just not used to it. People open doors for her almost every day, during special occasions or events or, most precisely, to get in her good graces, but something is different with Robin. Professionally speaking, there's nothing she could do to get him to a higher level on his career and clearly nobody is forcing him to be extremely kind with her. It comes so natural and spontaneously to him. Trying not to fantasize too much about his gallantry, Regina leads the way reaching the photoshoot set.

'Oh My God! Ms. Mills!', a redhead woman suddenly bumps into Regina. 'I'm so sorry. I was distracted and I didn't see you. My apologies.'

'That's fine', Regina says, fixing her clothes.

'We were.. I mean, Mr. Haunt and Graham are waiting for you.' Despite all her efforts, the woman is now blushing and Regina can clearly see her cheeks turning red.

'And now that I'm here, let's get the party started.'

'Absolutely, Ms. Mills.'

'One more thing..' Regina turns fast towards the young woman, looking straight into her blue eyes, 'How many times do I need to tell you not to call me Ms. Mills, Zelena?' Without breaking the eye contact, Regina waits for an answer that doesn't come. 'Good. Then call me Regina. Please.' She says smiling at her to defuse the situation.

'Yes, Regina.'

Followed by Robin and Zelena, Regina reaches her dear friend Jason in the other room, who was waiting for her with the best photographer she ever met. Graham and Jason stops talking as soon as they see her. Jason greets her with open arms, gently kissing her cheeks and Graham slightly bows in front of her and says, 'there you are!'

'I apologize, you know I hate being late', Regina says smiling at them.

'That would be my fault.' Robin takes a step forward, raising his right hand. 'I didn't know about the photoshoot session until this morning.'

'You must me Robin Locksley, the man who's trying to take Regina's leading role and stealing the company in the meantime. Am I wrong?' Graham says in an irritated (tone of) voice, without taking his eyes off him.

'Well..' Robin hesitates, wondering what to answer. 'I'm not doing such a thing, but you're right about something - I am Robin Locksley, nice to meet you.' He stretches out his hand, waiting for Graham to shake his hand, but he doesn't. Regina hates this situation more than she is willing to admit, she wishes she could do something, at least say something, but she stands still instead. She needs to talk to Graham as soon as possible, but not in front of them, especially not in front of Robin.

Jason, though, breaks the ice and shakes Robin's hand smiling at him. 'Pleasure to meet you Mr. Locksley. I'm Jason Haunt. Is this your first photoshoot?'

'Is it so obvious?' Robin answers, rubbing the back of the neck with his left hand.

'Graham, a word, please.' Regina requests, taking a few steps back, inviting her friend to follow her whether he wants it or not. 'Jason, why don't you show Robin the different sets in the meantime? I will be right back.' Without waiting for a direct answer, Regina turns around and keeps walking, knowing for sure that Graham is following her. She stops only when she finds a private spot, where nobody will interfere nor listen to them.

'Regina..'

'No. I speak first', She says, interrupting him. 'I don't know what pushed you to say those things to Mr. Locksley, but whatever that was, you did something wrong. This is not how we do things, we don't treat people, especially coworkers, like that. What were you thinking?' She sounds more rude than she wants to, but this isn't about Robin, it is about work.

'I'm sorry, Regina.' Graham says, looking straight into her eyes. 'You know I would support you until the end of times, but I heard that Mr. Gold hired Mr. Locksley to question all of your decisions, forces you to work with him and discredits your hard work, so I couldn't resist it. Nobody knows as much about fashion like you do, you're the Queen of Fashion for God's sake, and looking at this..', Graham hesitates for a second, '..gorgeous, but not so competent, British man, irritates me.'

Regina spontaneously smiles at the fact, that he calls Robin gorgeous, can she blame him? _If Graham only knows how good Robin is in bed,_ Regina thinks.

'Look..', She tries not to think about what happened in the elevator, 'I don't like this situation either. Do you think I want my decisions to be questioned all the time? That one member of the board, despite the fact that he's a jerk, does whatever he can to put me under a bad light to take my place? And if he wins, I might lose this company forever after everything I've sacrificed for Storybrooke magazine? No! I don't.' Regina takes a deep breath. 'But.. I'm trying to make this thing work as good as I can. It's hard, but it's for the best of the magazine.'

'You are the only one the magazine needs. Everybody in that building is amazing, talented and useful, but they are not indispensable.' Graham takes a step closer and takes her hand: 'There are thousands of photographers, models, designers, stylists all around the world, but there's only one Regina Mills. Without you, Storybrooke would be nothing. You can't let him win, you _won't_ let him. Promise me!'

'I will try, Graham. You know how much this magazine means to me', she says, smiling at him. She can't just promise that, it's way too much, even for her. Gold is a powerful man and he never takes a no for answer.

'I'd be the first one to quit, if he becomes the Editor-in-Chief, even if it means creating a new magazine from the scratch with you.'

'Hopefully that won't be necessary', Regina says, placing her hand on his shoulder, trying to reassure him. 'Now. Can we focus on this photoshoot? For Jason.'

'Alright, ma'am.'

* * *

During the entire photoshoot, Robin can't help but admire how much hard work Regina puts in everything she does, especially in the smallest details. People think they are spectacular photos, but watching her and Graham working together on the different sets changes his point of view. What common people may think are just necklaces, rings and hats, they are actually small details, that makes the final result more perfect. And Robin understands that now.

'Sorry', Regina says talking toward him, at the back of the room.

'Oh no. Don't.' Robin smiles politely. 'Some details are essential, especially during a photoshoot.'

'Actually I wanted to apologize for what happened earlier. With.. with Graham.' She crosses her arms around her chest, looking for the right words to say. 'It's not your fault that Gold dragged you into this messy and complicated situation, and Graham should've never talked to you like that. He's.. he's a pro at his job, but before that he's a great friend and cares for me. I'm sorry he overstepped.'

'Regina, that's okay. You don't have to apologize for that, it's not your responsibility', Robin says, slowly finding his way to her hand and taking it. 'I'm sure he's not the only one that thinks like that.'

'What do you mean?'

'Working for you.. _with you_ in the past few days, opened my eyes. You're not that self-concentrated, heartless, work obsessed boss I thought you were. I mean, you're a little bit obsessed with work, but it's a different kind of obsession. It's passion!' He gently rubs his thumb over the back of her hand. 'It's honorable how much you dedicate to this magazine and now, I understand when people say that Storybrooke wouldn't be the same without you. You're the heart of it, the breathing soul. So, don't worry about me. I'll be fine.'

'Well.. that's not fair though', she says, lowering her face to masquerade the fact that she's blushing.

'I'll be gone before they can even realize that. As soon as Gold understands, how valuable and essential you are to this magazine, I'll be out of your life and you'll keep doing your work without me breathing against your neck every second of the day.'

Regina rises her head fast, her eyes wide open. If a few minutes before she was simply blushing, now her cheeks are burning like hell. Flashbacks of that night in the elevator come back to Regina's mind as her breaths become deeper and louder.

'You shouldn't-'

'I probably shouldn't have said that, but..' Robin smirks a few inches away from her, 'your pulse.. I can feel it beating faster against my fingers.'

'Robin..', Regina whispers softly, making it sound like a prayer. Willingly or not, Robin moves slightly closer. Their noses are few millimeters from rubbing against each other and so are their lips. Regina swallows loudly, looking back and forth from his eyes to his lips.

'Regina! There you are!', A feminine voice fills up the entire room, forcing Robin to let her hand go. 'This place is amazing, wide but amazing.'

Regina takes a step back and tries to clear her head. That voice is way too familiar to her that she knows that Emma is walking toward them. 'Emma. What are you doing here?' She asks, friendly hugging her. Despite the fact Regina is glad to see her friend, she can't help but think that Robin almost kissed her.

'I need to talk to you. I was looking for you at the office, but Ruby told me you were here for a photoshoot session. So.. here I am, but I guess you're busy.' Emma says, turning to Robin.

'Oh, right. Emma, this is Robin Locksley, my partner for the magazine. Robin, this is my friend Emma.' Regina introduces them, trying to look as normal as possible. 'And no, I'm not busy. The photoshoot's just finished, we were about to leave.'

'I didn't mean to interrupt you.' Emma insists.

'No interruption at all. I'm gonna call a cab, so you and your friend will have the car all by yourself.' Robin says, turning to Regina. He gently places his hand on her back before he leaves.

'Wait!', she says, unconsciously grabbing his wrist. 'Emma and I will take a walk, I need to stretch my legs. You take the car, I'll call Jay, when we will be ready to come back.'

'Are you sure, Regina? I'm sure I can find a cab at every corner of this town', Robin insists.

'Don't be silly. I'm gonna text you his number.' She grabs her phone as she speaks. 'Call him and he will take you wherever you need.'

'Well, thank you then. See you tomorrow at the office.' Robin smiles at her, before greeting the blonde woman standing right next to them. 'It was nice to meet you, Emma.'

'See you tomorrow.'

'My pleasure.' Emma says, without taking her eyes off him until he walked out of the room. 'Look at those smiles!'

'What.. what smiles?'

'Mr. Hansome's smile and yours.' Emma says, raising her left eyebrow. 'Girl, you're glowing.'

'Oh shut up, Emma. I'm not glowing at all.' Regina wraps her arm around Emma's and they start walking out of the room. 'We're just working together, actually we're forced to. It's not what you think.'

'Please, Regina. Tell me how terrifying, uncomfortable, awful it is to be forced to work with such a handsome guy every single day. I'm all ears.'

'Why am I still talking to you?' Regina laughs, trying not to think about how uncomfortable it is to work with him, after they made love on the pavement of the elevator.

'Because I'm your friend and you love me.' Emma slightly tilts her head to lay on Regina's shoulder. 'He's British, right?'

'Come on!'

On their way to the Starbucks down to the next block, Regina avoids every single question Emma asks about Robin and their professional relationship. In a normal situation, she would be up to answer every question, but when it comes to Robin she always ends up saying more than she should. Knowing Emma, she already started a book inside that blondie head of hers about how they met, what happens during late nights at work, the wedding venue and their children's names, she clearly doesn't need more encouragement. Despite the fact that Regina hates lying, especially to the people close to her, she can't just tell her the truth. Both Robin and her agreed to never talk about what happened in the elevator that night, it was a mistake, a one-night thing.

 _If it was really nothing, then why I have feeling we were about to kiss again a few minute ago? Why did I crave his lips against mine so badly?_

'Earth to Regina. Are you here?', Emma asks, interrupting her thoughts as they're walking into a small park downtown.

'Yes. Yes, I'm sorry.' Regina shakes her head, trying to focus on her friend as they sit on a bench. 'You said you needed to talk to me and you looked worried. Is everything okay?'

'Walsh is back!' Emma says out of the blue, that Regina almost chokes on her latte. 'Yes. He wanted to talk and yesterday we met for breakfast.'

'Oh Emma..'

'That's okay. He said that he's an idiot, that he didn't mean what he said that day. He was tired and stressed because of the wedding. If he could turn back time and change everything, he would.' Emma lowers her head, staring at the Starbucks-cup in her hands. 'He asked me for a second chance. Start over.'

'And you?' Regina asks, trying to not push her friends too much. She wants to give her all the time she needs.

'I don't know what to do, Regina, that's why I came to you.' Emma turns to her and, despite all the efforts, she can't hide the tears that are slowly filling up her eyes. 'What would you do if Daniel would show up and tell you he wants to be with you again?'

'That's different.' Regina shakes her head. 'Daniel and I agreed to divorce, we weren't meant to be. We were happy at the start, but then our marriage started to fall apart right in front of us and there was nothing we could have done to fix it.' Regina bites her tongue, still feeling guilty for what had happened. 'We're happier now than we've been in the last few months of our marriage. And Walsh? This's something else.'

'But..'

'Walsh walked away. He left you a month before your wedding, because he was _too stressed and tired_. He told you he was wrong about your relationship, about you. He even said that the last three years were a mistake! Emma, look..', Regina stretches her arm and holds her friend's hand. 'I don't mean to rub it into your face, but I remember how much those words have hurt you and how heartbroken you were, I don't want to see you like that ever again.'

'What if he really changed his mind?', Emma asks, unable now to stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. 'Don't we all deserve a second chance?'

'You already gave it to him, remember? You asked him to meet in Central Park, right on the bench where you first saw each other, so you could have the chance to talk, but he didn't show up. And for how long did you wait for him?!'

'F- four hours.'

'Four hours. You sat on that bench for four long hours, waiting for him to give you the explanation you deserved and he didn't show up. He simply disappeared like he never existed and he moved away to God knows where.' Regina rises her free hand and wipes away the tears from Emma's face. 'It's been two years now, you moved on. You've become a whole new person – stronger, braver and independent.'

'Then why does it still hurt so much?'

'Sweetie, that's normal. A part of you will always care about him. Look..', Regina slightly turns her body towards Emma and gets closer. 'I can't tell you what to do nor what's best for you, but think of the woman you used to be and the woman you are now. Look how far you've come, how you've changed and let your instinct decide.'

Without saying anything, Emma wraps her arms around Regina then and hugs her tight, bursting into tears. Regina hugs her as well, slowly rubbing her hands up and down on Emma's back. She wish she could do more for Emma, but it's up to her now. Regina never really rooted for Walsh, but she's okay with him, as long as he makes her friend happy.

'Thank you, Regina.' Emma says between the sobs, as she breaks the hug.

'You don't need to thank me. I'm your friend and that's what friends are for.'

* * *

Once again, I'm sorry for updating it after such a long time. I really hope you enjoyed it tho!

Sadly I have to give up on "My Other Half" ff because I don't have enough time to write it and the last chapter of "The Bandit" will be posted as soon as possible.

Many of you know that I'm a video maker and I really love that, but it's not easy to make videos and still find the time to write fanfictions. So, I was wondering if you're still interested in this AU story or not. Please, let me know, so I'll decide what to do.

Daisy.


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